


Lost and Found

by Kitsune_Moonstar



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-17
Updated: 2013-03-17
Packaged: 2017-12-05 16:02:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 6,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/725161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitsune_Moonstar/pseuds/Kitsune_Moonstar
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A change in military regulations changes a number of things for Roy and Riza.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Beginning of a Problem

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own FMA or its characters. This is AU.

**The Beginning of a Problem**

She knew it was going to be a bad day from the start. Oh the weather was beautiful when she walked to the office with Hayate that morning, but there was an overwhelming sense of premonition hanging over her. It wasn't anything solid really, but it was there, and it wasn't going away.

The day was perfectly normal at the office which put her even more on edge. She was just waiting for the shoe to drop. The others noticed her mood and left her alone for the most part. By lunchtime, she had them on edge as well. Even the colonel had picked up on it.

It arrived that afternoon, an official notice to a change in regulations, and Hawkeye knew it was bad news even before the colonel began to read it.

"From now on, all female military personnel are prohibited from serving in active combat zones and positions."

Riza sat there, listening to the words in shock, and she knew, she just knew, that they were going to take him away from her.


	2. Reactions

**Reactions**

The anger came later, back in the safety of her apartment. How dare they? It wasn't fair for them to ban her from her job just because she was a woman. She was one of their best snipers, damn it! The fury rose in her in waves, darkening her vision. The sharp pain in the palm of her hand woke her from this state, and she looked down to find she'd broken the tea cup she'd been holding.

She cleaned up the mess, her mind running in circles. This couldn't be happening. Not to her. Not when her colonel needed her. She needed to be at his side. She had been there from the start. They couldn't change that now. She belonged with him. They'd been together since they were children.

Her thoughts kept spinning in circles, unable to accept the fact that Mustang might be ordered to go someplace where she couldn't follow. She went through the motions of feeding Hayate and fixing herself dinner all the while working herself deeper in denial over the day's news.

After tossing and turning for three hour, Riza gave up on sleep. She settled down on the couch with a cup of tea and a book to read. She couldn't have told you later what had happened in the story, but it was enough to let her calm down and get her mind back to thinking instead of just emoting. They hadn't reassigned her yet, and she could and would protect Mustang until that happened. And if and when she was reassigned, she would find a way to protect him, even if it took leaving the military to do it.


	3. Marching Orders

**Marching Orders**

Riza had expected this. From the moment women had been banned from active combat roles, she had been dreading the start of a conflict. And now it had happened. Amestris was now involved in a border conflict with Drachma, and the State Alchemists had been ordered to the front. Mustang had managed to get Edward exempted, but he was set to leave at the end of the week.

Which was why she getting quietly drunk at the bar he and Hughes had frequented. This was not normal for her, but then she had never been forcibly separated from her colonel before. She'd had enough booze that she didn't notice when someone sat down next to her.

"Lieutenant?"

She smiled at him. "That's not my name."

"Hawkeye."

"Still not my name," she sing-songed. Riza turned, draping her arms around his neck.

"Riza," Roy sighed. "You would be a happy drunk."

He helped her off her stool. "Come on, Riza. Let's get you home."

As usual she followed his lead, allowing him to take her home and put her to bed. But when he went to head home, her hand latched around his wrist.

"Don't go. Please."

He paused then leaned over her, lips almost brushing her ear. "I'm coming back, Riza. I promise."


	4. Adjustments

**Adjustments**

Most people would find it hard to believe, but Riza Hawkeye missed her old working environment. The colonel might run an office that was barely controlled chaos and was always behind on its paperwork, but at least everyone in that office had treated her like a military officer. Her new co-workers seemed to think that because she wasn't male, she couldn't be anything other than a brainless ball of fluff.

To be fair, her new CO obviously didn't think that, but he was about the only one. Colonel Winters was about the only thing decent about her new position. He seemed like a good man, and he reminded her slightly of Hughes. That mainly had to do with the number of pictures of his five daughters displayed on his desk. In fact, she had learned more about his family on her first day in the office than anything else. The girls were Amelia, eight, Elise, six, Irene, four, and the twins, Olivia and Una, two, and clearly, they were the apples of their father's eye.

But other than Col. Winters, her co-workers were jackasses. She had already been here a week and had been called doll, babe, baby, sweetie, honey, sugar, toots, baby doll, muffin, and cutie among other things. Riza would be quite happy for an excuse to shoot at men in her office. Unfortunately, without Mustang in charge, she might not get away with it.

She missed him. Truthfully, she missed all of her co-workers. For all that, Riza often felt like a preschool teacher when dealing with them, they were a good team and fairly competent. She missed Fuery's kindness, Breda's wit, and Falman's intelligence. She missed Havoc. He had been the first real friend she had made outside of Roy. In a lot of ways, he was like a brother to her. And there was the colonel.

Roy Mustang had been her companion from the time she was six years old. While it was true they had had several periods of separation, Roy was about the only constant in her life. He was definitely the most important person in her life. She worried about them all, but it was Roy that concerned her the most. Ishval had almost destroyed him, and this time around he didn't Hughes and herself to look after him. She had never been the person waiting at home before, but she found herself not coping well at all. Her almost daily visits with Gracia were one of the few things that were keeping her sane.


	5. The First Step

**The First Step**

Riza nervously stepped off the train. Gracia had talked her into this, but she was having second and third thoughts about it. She was uncomfortable about being the one to change the status quo in their relationship, but she was more afraid of losing Roy to this war. She wasn't afraid of him dying. Well she was, but that wasn't the main fear right now. This situation was a little too much like Ishval, and this time he didn't have either Hughes or herself to look after him.

She headed for the local hotel. She didn't have reservations, but given that this town was the closest to the front, she figured the hotel would be mostly empty. She was right and getting a room was easy. Now she just had to find Mustang.

He had shore leave this weekend; she knew that. It had started earlier today, and she could think of a few places he could be. Of course, none of them were places she really wanted him to be right now. She decided she would start by checking the bars in town. With any luck, he'd be at one of them, once again trying to drown the guilt in alcohol. Not that she wanted him to be doing that, but it was better than some of the places he could be.

She was in luck. Riza found Mustang in the second bar she walked in to. It was obvious he hadn't been there long which was a good thing as she was not in the mood to deal with him drunk right now. She really didn't care about the scene she was creating as she stalked in, grabbed him by the ear, and then marched him out. And feeling rather daring at that moment once they were outside, Riza grabbed his collar and kissed him.

A very confused Roy Mustang pulled away from her moments later.

"Hawkeye?"

Her courage faltered a little. She wasn't entirely sure what to do next, so she settled for slipping her fingers between his and smiling at him.

"We can talk back at the hotel."

The walk back to the hotel was distinctly odd. Riza was once again having doubts, and Roy had no clue what was going on. Neither spoke at all. In all possibility, they probably looked like a normal couple out for a walk. Maybe at some point they would be. Riza almost laughed as that thought popped into her head. She doubted they would ever me a normal couple. If they ever ended up as a couple, that was.

She led him up to her room, motioning for him to go in first and locking the door behind her.

"What's this about, Hawkeye?"

She paused, not really knowing how to explain. Finally, the words just spilled out of her mouth.

"I can't lose you."

The look on his face softened. "Hawkeye--"

"It's not just the fact that I'm not out there with you. I mean, that's part of the problem to, but there's more to it." It was all just flowing out of her mouth without control; part of her was vaguely horrified that she was so out of control. "I know that Havoc and others can most likely keep you safe, at least from the physical things. But they didn't serve with you during Ishval. They don't know when watch you or what to look for to protect you from your demons."

"I can't deal with the knowledge that I could loose you without ever having a chance for _us_. You're not my commanding officer. You might not ever be again." She looked at her hands then met his eyes. "I love you. I--"

She was cut off by his lips on hers. Roy's hands had come up to frame her face, and she was trapped between his body and the door. He pulled back to look at her with burning eyes. His fingers traced across her features, the pad of his thumb pressing against her lips.

"If we do this, there is no going back. I won't ever be able give you up." He kissed her again. "I love you, bright flame."

"So what's next?"

Roy gathered her up in his arms, burying his face in her hair. "I don't know. We just have to take this one step at a time."


	6. Four O'Clock Appointment

**Four O'Clock Appointment**

"You look much better, Riza." Gracia set the teacup in front of her. "Something is definitely agreeing with you."

"Is that your way of saying I told you so?" She helped herself to the lemon cake. "You were right. I needed to go see Roy, and things did work themselves out."

Gracia just laughed. "That pretty blush of yours tells me everything I need to know. So how are you doing?"

"Personally or professionally?" She nibbled at the cake. "Professionally, I can't believe I thought the guys were bad. My new co-workers take the cake. Johnston is a sexist pig, Grant is as dumb as a rock if not dumber, and Calvin just wants to get in my pants."

"And your CO?"

Riza smiled. "He's a sweet man, but he's already up to his ears with the supply orders and their normal antics. They'll leave me alone when he's around, but if I'm stuck alone with them, all bets are off."

"You could always sic Roy on them."

She shook her head. "He has enough on his plate. He doesn't need to worry about me."

Gracia let the subject drop. "Do you have plans for the weekend? I was thinking about arranging for Elysia to stay with my parents and spending a weekend indulging myself. Company would be welcome."

"Sure. Actually," Riza blushed, "I could do with a shopping trip. Before I wasn't sure what would happen. This time I want to be a little more prepared."

"This time?"

Her blush deepened. "Roy has weekend leave in two weeks. I said I would be back then."

Gracia laughed. "My little Riza, all grown up and going lingerie shopping."

"Gracia!" No one else would have ever teased her about her love life, but then that's what best friends were for. Riza reached for another piece of cake. "Be nice or I'll get Roy to teach Elysia how to play poker when he gets back. You know how she loves to play games with Uncle Roy. Just think of all the money she could win off Uncle Havoc."


	7. Gossip Flies

**Gossip Flies**

Because there wasn't anything formal between them, Riza only found out when it became public knowledge. Rumors had abounded from the beginning of the campaign. She had always done her best to ignore them, but she had some inkling of what was the latest buzz. That still didn't prepare her for the news the Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist, was missing in action.

Once the official announcement had been made, she couldn't escape it. No matter what she did or where she went, Mustang's disappearance was the favorite subject of discussion. Riza had been subjected to everything from theories of how Mustang had gone down in a blaze of glory to suspicions of him betraying them to the other side. The only facts they had though were that Mustang had last checked in halfway through a patrol. That patrol had returned late after being attacked on their way back to the base camp. Mustang had been lost in the chaos of the attack.

And that was all the facts they had. She took refuge in that. There was no proof that Mustang was injured, captured, or dead. For all she knew, he could have a perfectly good reason to be laying low. She wasn't there, so she couldn't know. And that was why she was seeking haven in a storage closet. Riza just needed some space away from all the gossip. She had faith in Roy, but that didn't stop the fear.


	8. Heartsick

**Heartsick**

The stress had to be getting to her. That was the only explanation Riza could think of for her constant exhaustion and nausea. It wasn't the flu. That was going around, but she wasn't sneezing or coughing at all. Everyone else who had come down with it at Headquarters had those symptoms.

Technically, there really wasn't much for her to be stressed about. Her job was easy enough. She handled paperwork for the quartermaster's office, and while things at times got hectic, it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Yes, her co-workers were a trio of idiots, but really it wasn't that bad. And officially, her only relation was her grandfather who was safely station at Eastern Headquarters.

Of course, the truth of the matter was she was worried about her former CO and current lover who was missing in action. Mustang had now been missing for close to two weeks, and she was beginning to truly worry. She had sent messages to Havoc and the others who had been at the front with him, but they had seen no sign of him either nor a whisper.

Gracia was one of the few things that were keeping her sane. The Elrics were the others. Roy had managed to keep the boys out of the border conflict. They had returned the favor by dropping in on Hawkeye whenever they were in Central, to check in and to pass on any information they came across. Riza knew she had to be patient. She had faith in Roy. He was alive, and he would be back.

She'd go to the doctor's to satisfy Gracia. And maybe the doctor could think of something to help her stress levels. All she had right now was hope and faith.


	9. Considr Me a Window

**Consider Me a Widow**

She was at work when she got the news. It didn't register at first. Riza just stood there, trying to comprehend what exactly had been said to her. The world went black as her mind finally wrapped around the statement. The world came back in focus as her CO gently set her in a chair, calling for a glass of water.

"Are you all right, Lieutenant?"

She nodded automatically. "Just a little lightheaded, sir. I haven't been feeling well lately."

She wasn't feeling well at all. Colonel Roy Mustang was now considered to be killed in action. Before, he had only been listed as missing in action. Apparently, after four weeks with no sign of him, the military was willing to give up on him. There was no body to bury, but there would a state funeral. As her CO fussed over her and rambled on about the details of the arrangements, Riza fought her persistent nausea. She doubted it would go away anytime soon even if her doctor's appointment was the morning of the funeral. She didn't think anything would ever be right again.


	10. I Am Not Here

**I Am Not Here**

Riza stood before his grave, dry eyed. She would not cry. Not here. Not while she was being watched. She knew Gracia stood behind her. Most of the others had left, but she couldn't bring herself to yet. Her hands rested on her stomach, trying to ward off her nausea.

"Riza?"

She didn't turn around. "They never found his body, you know. I have no proof that he's dead."

"Oh, Riza."

"You don't have to stay, Gracia. I'll be all right."

"Havoc and the others asked me to stay with you for awhile. They're afraid you'll do something stupid."

Riza still faced the grave. "If I really knew for sure he was dead, if I had seen his body, I would be very tempted to follow him. But I don't know for sure, and I can't do that to the two of us."

Gracia breath caught. "Riza. Oh, sweetheart. How long?"

"I'm ten weeks along. I found out this morning." She finally turned to face her friend, smiling weakly. "At least I don't have the flu. I'm just pregnant."

Gracia pulled her into a tight hug. "It'll be okay, Riza. I promise."

Riza didn't reply. She honestly didn't know what to say. There was a part of her that wouldn't let go of hope despite what her rational side was screaming at her. She just held onto Gracia and prayed she could hold onto hope.


	11. Home Is Where the Heart Is

**Home is Where the Heart Is**

Riza wasn't surprised when Gracia appeared at her door. The other woman had been stopping by frequently since the funeral. She was surprised when Gracia insisted they for a walk. Normally, they simply had tea at the apartment or one of the local cafes.

"You know that Maes was the executer of Roy's will, right?" Gracia began hesitantly. "And since he's gone, it falls to me? I've been going through the will."

Riza nodded. It wasn't that surprising. In most cases, if Roy was dead, she would be as well.

"His estate is pretty evenly divided between the two of us," she continued, "but there was one major thing left to you."

They had stopped in front of an old Victorian style home just a few blocks away from Gracia's own house. The porch was covered in climbing roses and there was a large oak tree in the front yard.

"This is yours."

"What?" She stared at the house in shock. She hadn't even known Roy owned a house. He had always lived in an apartment near headquarters.

"According to the paperwork I have, he bought the place after his promotion to lieutenant colonel." Gracia's voice was soft. "The house and most of his possessions are left to you. I have the keys if you'd like to take a look around."

Riza nodded absently, still in shock a little. The inside of the house was elegant and spacious. Beautiful hardwood floors and a large fireplace. It was the type of place she would have chosen for herself. It was the type of place Roy would be at home in. She could see why he choose it. It was the someplace you would want to come home to.

"There's a letter." Gracia held it out. "Roy left it with me before he deployed."

Riza shook her head. "Keep it. If they find his body, then I'll read it. Until then I'll be waiting here for him come home."

Her hands went to her stomach, and she corrected herself. "We'll be waiting for him."


	12. We Are Not Alone

**We Are Not Alone**

It was the second funeral she had attended in less than two months. At least, this time she knew the one they were burying was actually dead. Riza stood behind the Elrics and Winry in full dress uniform, doing her best to provide some support. The trio seemed so much more like the children they were today. Pinako's death had shaken them all.

She watched as Winry spoke quietly with the brothers before sending them back towards the house. Riza met Ed's eyes, and he nodded back. The boys disappeared down the road, and Riza waited.

"I don't what I'm going to do without her." Winry's voice was barely a whisper, her eyes fixed on the lily that lay on the grave. "I always thought she'd be there."

She turned to face Riza. "I just can't live in that house right now, not by myself. Not with never knowing when or if Ed and Al would be back. I don't know what to do."

Riza smiled gently. "Believe me, I understand. You're always welcome in my home, Winry. If you decide that you want to move to Central, my door is open. It would be nice to have someone around when I start to get unwieldy."

The young woman blinked. A hand came up to cover her mouth. "You're pregnant?"

Riza nodded. "I'm just about three and half months along."

Winry lunged at her, wrapping her in a tight hug. Riza's arms went around the younger girl. She could feel tear stains soaking into her uniform. Stroking the girl's hair, Riza let her cry. Right now, that was what Winry needed. She couldn't bring back the girl's grandmother or replace her, but she could provide comfort with the fact that Winry was not alone. Neither of them were.


	13. Idiot Boys

**Idiot Boys**

Carl Winters was a smart man. He hadn't survived his wife's four pregnancies without learning a thing or two. And one of them was you don't antagonize the pregnant lady. Which was more than he could say of his subordinates. He had always known they were idiots, but he hadn't thought they were this stupid.

He hadn't been that surprised when Lt. Hawkeye informed him she was pregnant. She had been showing a number of the same signs his wife had, and despite her passing them off as stress, he had been pretty sure of the real cause. He had been surprised, however, when she insisted on working all the way through her second trimester. Winters supposed it was therapeutic for her. He knew the lieutenant had been close to the Flame Alchemist, and with the man's recent death, she probably didn't want to have time dwell on the matter.

Still, it didn't make for the most pleasant work place. It seemed that her hormones had made her a little trigger happy, and the fact that her co-workers were idiots and had the tendency to make stupid comments wasn't helping her temper any. Well, at least the paperwork was getting done on time for a change.


	14. Braving the Lion's Den

**Braving the Lion's Den**

It had originally been a simple plan: visit Lieutenant Hawkeye and see if she could talk the Elric brothers into remaining with the military. No one knew quite how the two boys had managed to get the younger's body back, but the military really didn't want to loose two alchemists of their talent, even if the younger wasn't strictly a State Alchemist. Some digging had brought to light the fact that with Colonel Mustang's death, the Elric brothers had become emancipated minors under the care of the lieutenant.

Unfortunately, Lieutenant Hawkeye had just taken maternity leave which meant he would have to track her down at home instead of at the office. Her address was easy enough to come by, but actually getting in to see the lieutenant was another story. First he'd had to pass the twin sentinels of the Elric brothers at the front door, and then the scrutiny of Brigadier General Hughes' widow and Miss Rockbell before being admitted to her presence.

He had never met the lieutenant off duty before. When he was ushered into the living, he almost didn't recognize the woman. The woman in the pale green jumper with blond hair spilling over her shoulders was a far cry from the neatly uniformed sniper he remembered. It was a pleasant meeting. Hakuro would admit to that. He wasn't quite sure what else was accomplished.

They had tea and discussed a number of things. Lt. Hawkeye made it clear that the choice belonged to the Elrics brothers and she was not going to interfere in the matter. She offered him a cookie. He brought up the matter of the yet unnamed father of her child. She gave a soft giggle.

"I thought everyone knew."

The lieutenant didn't answer his question though. After a half hour of polite conversation, he was shown the door. The general didn't know if he had accomplished anything, but he had the feeling that he had narrowly missed being in a very dangerous situation.


	15. Mirage

**Mirage**

At this point, Roy was willing to admit he was lost. He was somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Perhaps waiting for a rescue would have been a smarter idea than trying to escape from the prison camp. Well, he had pulled off the escape part. Now he just had to figure out how to get home. Roy would admit this was not one of his better plans, but he hand wanted to go home. Well, truthfully, he had wanted Hawkeye.

He was exhausted, hungry, thirsty, and now he was beginning to hallucinate. Well, at least he thought he was. There wasn't really another explanation for the tall blond boy who had just appeared in front of him. The kid looked familiar though.

"Of course, you would be out here. Do you know how worried you've had people, Colonel Bastard?"

Now that was a voice he recognized.

"Fullmetal, what are you doing in my hallucinations? I would prefer Hawkeye."

"I'm no delusion, idiot." There was a sigh. "Give me a hand, Al."

Supported between the two young men, Roy began to realize that this wasn't a hallucination. Illusions wouldn't have such boney shoulders.


	16. Coming Home

**Coming Home**

"Fullmetal, what are we doing here?" Roy stared at his house. Well, he had never actually lived there, but he did own the building.

"We live here. Well, when we're in Central that is. Most of the time it's Lt. Hawkeye and Winry." The younger man glared at him. "Weren't you listening last night?"

To tell the truth, he had been more interested in the food and hot water than listening to Edward. After months in the prison camp and several weeks wandering the wilderness, Roy had been rather single minded in the pursuit of a decent meal and a bath.

The curtains moved, and suddenly, Winry Rockbell was throwing open the front door.

"You found him!"

Roy found his arms momentarily full of Winry before she turned at threw herself at Edward. The two teens were the same height now. When had that happened?

"Riza will be so pleased." She beamed at him. "Come inside."

He found himself being escorted in to the kitchen where Winry made tea.

"Where's Hawkeye?" All Roy really wanted was to have her back in his arms. Then he'd know this was real, not another dream.

Winry bit her lip. "I think she's taking a nap. She hasn't been sleeping well. We didn't tell her that Ed and Al were looking for you. We didn't want to get her hopes up. She never believed it when the reported you dead, but it's been hard on her."

"Can I see her? I promise I won't wake her."

The trio exchanged looks. Ed nodded. "I don't suppose it would hurt. She took over the master bedroom when we moved in."

Roy didn't know why they were being so evasive. He headed up stairs, relying on old memories to find the master suite. The door was open a crack, and he silently pushed the rest of the way open. Beside the big bay window sat a rocking chair. Riza was facing away from him, clearly asleep. But what really caught his attention was her stomach. Riza was clearly pregnant.

He knelt before her, brushing a strand of hair from her face. She was wearing it down these days it seemed. His hand unconsciously went to the bulge of her stomach. He hadn't expected this. Hell, he didn't even know if this child was his. A small fluttering pulsed against his hand. Familiar mahogany eyes flickered open.

"Roy?" Her eyes shut again as her hands fell to her stomach. Riza sighed. "Well, little one, it looks like I was dreaming about you father again."

The wistfulness in her voice undid him. His hands went to cup her cheeks.

"Riza. Riza, it's not a dream."

Those eyes snapped open again. Roy held her gaze. One shaky hand came up to cover his.

"Roy?" There were tears in her eyes. There were certainly tears in his own.

His arms were suddenly full of Riza. He held her close, finally home.


	17. Born at the Right Time

**Born at the Right Time**

Edward and Alphonse had found Roy about three weeks before Riza's due date. It was a good thing too, she decided, given the amount of paperwork he had to fill out to officially be declared alive and to be reinstated to the military. It had taken them a full week just to find out the necessary procedures. However, Riza was adamant that the father of her child would be alive both on paper and in the flesh when her baby was born, and most of the bureaucrats were willing to expedite the paperwork rather than upset the pregnant lady.

Unfortunately, there were a few who didn't see the reason for the rush. This was why Riza was currently having a full blown shouting match with the clerk's supervisor. Roy had simply been watching the fireworks, he had learned his lesson about interfering in these affairs at an earlier date, when the puddle of water at Riza's feet caught his eye. She clearly hadn't noticed, but she had been complaining of backaches earlier, so there was the possibility she had gone into labor.

"Riza? Sweetheart?" He approached her carefully; she looked ready to pull her gun on the man she was yelling at. "Did your water just break?"

She blinked then nodded. "I think you're right."

Riza turned back to the man. "I will be back in two days. I expect the matter to be resolved by then."

Then she allowed Roy to escort her back to the car.

"You'll need to call Gracia and Winry when we get to the hospital. Winry knows where my bag is."

He was fairly sure that was when his brain short circuited. For the next thing Roy knew, he was seated next to Riza's bed in the maternity ward, holding her hand and listening to a young doctor tell them that it could be hours before the baby would actually be born. Winry arrived shortly, bringing with her a large duffle bag, with Gracia and Elysia on her heels.

Gracia quickly took charge, shooing himself and Elysia downstairs to get snacks. When they returned, Riza was dressed in a nightgown of her own from home, and Gracia was making tea.

"Have a seat. Things probably won't really start happening for a few more hours."

So they sat and drank tea and talked.

"Have you two decided on names yet?" Winry asked. "Riza wouldn't tell us before we found you."

Roy shared a grin with his fiancée. "Maes Christopher if it's a boy. Rowan Mea if it's a girl. Both if twins."

Riza grimaced. "I thought you said this would take awhile, Gracia."

"Contractions?"

"Brutal."

Gracia took over. "Roy, help her sit up a little more. Elysia, sweetie, go get me a doctor. Winry, help me with this."

Gracia head disappeared underneath the blanket covering Riza.

"The baby's crowning, Riza. I'm going to need you to push on the next contraction."

Roy's hand was beginning to change colors. He did his best to ignore the pain. "Riza?"

She whimpered slightly.

"You're almost there, sweetheart," Gracia called. "The head and shoulder's are out. One more push should do it."

Riza squeezed his hand tightly.

"She's out!"

And suddenly Winry was placing a little blanket wrapped bundle in his arms. Rowan blinked up at him with dark eyes before letting out a wail. Dark fuzz covered the top of her head.

"Roy?"

He turned to Riza, reluctantly holding out their daughter to her. "She's beautiful, Riza. Our daughter's beautiful."

Riza pulled her daughter into her arms, gently cradling infant to her breast and guiding her to nurse. Roy ignored the doctor who had just rushed in and the ecstatic Winry and Gracia to watch Riza and his daughter. For the first time in years he was completely content. He was home and safe with Riza, and now they had their beautiful daughter as well. He couldn't ask for more.


	18. True Companion

**True Companion**

The wedding took place a month after Rowan's birth. Winry acted as a bridesmaid, and Elysia was the flower girl while Gracia held the guest of honor. Ed, Al, and Havoc served as the groomsmen, and General Grumman gave the bride away. It was a small wedding, no more than fifty guests, but everyone was so pleased to be there that the room felt completely full.

Roy didn't really care. All that mattered was that Riza stood beside him, her hand in his. Yes, it would mean he would have to rearrange his plans somewhat, originally a wedding and children came after he had become Fuhrur, but truthfully, he was too happy to care about the order of things. His baby girl was beautiful and looked so much like her mother despite the raven hair she had clearly inherited from him. And now Riza would officially be his partner, his wife.

He couldn't tell anyone what was said during the ceremony if his life depended on it. What he remembered were Riza's eyes and the moment the officiant declared them husband and wife. And the kiss, of course. That was hard to forget. It was the first time he had ever kissed her in front of everyone who mattered to them. The cheers that the action had received upset Rowan, but it was nothing that her mother couldn't sooth.

Roy held his wife and his daughter close as the photographer took pictures of the wedding party. Just a few months ago this would have been simply a pleasant dream, a distraction from the reality of the prison camp. A year ago even the thought of a real relationship with Riza outside of work would have been unlikely. Now he had a family. He might not be Fuhrur yet, but Roy couldn't imagine being happier than right now.

Hand in hand, he and Riza stepped out into the sunlight. They were taking a short honeymoon, mostly a chance to get settled at home with Rowan, before Roy would return to work. He still had a long way to go if he was going to rise to the head of the country. Roy wasn't worried though. He had Riza at his side, and that was all he truly needed. After all, they were parents now. How could running a country be harder than that?


End file.
